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What is your first memory of the piano?
My Grandmother was a professional pianist and teacher, and my mother played too, though not professionally. My parents used to listen to classical music a lot and I absolutely loved it from a very young age.

My first lesson was with a rather scary teacher, Mrs Nellie Monks! Despite her very strict ways and frosty demeanour, I was hooked from the moment I walked into her music room where her beautiful grand piano looked out through French windows onto her garden. I practised constantly, much to the annoyance of my siblings.

It occurred to me recently that I have recreated that first impression with my own lovely grand piano looking out onto the garden through French windows!


Who or what inspired you to start teaching?
I was inspired and encouraged to start teaching by my second piano teachers who are actually opera singers, piano was their second instrument but they were wonderful and inspiring teachers (Jennifer Dakin and her husband Bonnaventura Bottone). When I first went to them they were quite young themselves, and usually Jen would teach me, but Bon taught me quite often too as their young family began to expand and Jen became busier with her babies.

I think that their approach as singers really helped me to develop a good tone and my approach to the piano as a ‘singing instrument’, always mindful of the sound, colours, touch and tone. It also gave me a great sense of musical phrasing. I am very grateful to them both for the way in which they encouraged and inspired me musically.

Later on they did try to persuade me to move to a specialist piano teacher, I was very reluctant to do so as I really loved my lessons with Jen and Bon, but eventually I did move on. They also talked to my parents about the option of specialist music school for me, but my parents were not keen on the idea of me being away from home at a young age.

In my early twenties I visited Jen again and she encouraged me to start teaching, and I have been teaching ever since, over 25 years now.

In 2009 I decided I ought to have some more pieces of paper which reflected my experience as a piano teacher so I enrolled on the CT ABRSM course which initially I found very daunting as it encourages you to question and explore your beliefs and experiences around your teaching; it is a very reflective course. After a shaky start though, I really did enjoy it and with the support of an excellent mentor and Course Leader ( Mary Pells and  Moira Hayward), I gained so much from completing this course. Having embarked on it initially for the extra qualification, I soon realised that the journey was far more valuable.

The experiences I had on the course and in particular, the chance to share knowledge, experience, repertoire and teaching materials with teaching colleagues were so valuable and really did re-energise my teaching. One of the best things about this course is the support you get from you colleagues in your mentor group, I was lucky to be with a lovely group of teachers and we still meet up when we can, in fact many of us met up at the ABRSM conference recently, and one came along to join me and other piano teachers at tothe recent EPTA meeting for the newly formed Bedford Town region.

After the CT I went on to take the ABRSM teachers Diploma: this was also a great experience and gave me chance to work with an excellent mentor Emyr Roberts who prepared us fantastically for the final exam.


Who were your most memorable/significant teachers?
Later on, I worked with a wonderful teacher and pianist in North Devon, Susan Steele, who had studied at the Royal Academy and moved to Devon with her family and is still very busy as a performer as well as a teacher.  Susan helped me to prepare for the AB Performer’s Diploma, and acted as a sort of teaching mentor too: over the years she and her husband, artist Robin Wiggins, have become very dear friends of mine.
I must, of course, pay tribute to my late husband, concert pianist and teacher Raymond Banning, who helped me enormously with my playing. Raymond was a fabulous teacher and a Professor at Trinity College of Music in London. Raymond had endless patience and was such a wonderful pianist who was known for his beautiful sound. He was a great fan of Horowitz and Arrau, and had a preference for the Romantic, and also Impressionist works. Raymond also really enjoyed teaching adult amateur pianists and believed that with the right encouragement there were no barriers to how far they might develop their playing. I attended and later also helped at his Piano weekends for amateur pianists which he ran with his friend, journalist Richard Ingrams, editor of ‘The Oldie’ magazine, who sponsored these weekends (and also an excellent pianist himself and pupil of Raymond’s). Watching his teaching on these courses was so inspiring: he was so patient and encouraging, identifying exactly what needed to be worked at and how, but in such a kind manner and by the end of the weekends you could really hear the improvement in people’s playing. He was truly inspirational.


Who or what are the most important influences on your teaching?
The courses I have attended over the last few years have influenced my teaching enormously, as have the teachers I have already mentioned.

Last year I started studying with Graham Fitch who I have to say is one of the best teachers I have ever met!

I first encountered Graham when I was playing in a workshop he was giving for the London Piano Meet up Group and I immediately felt comfortable with his style of teaching, I have been studying with him ever since. Graham has such a wealth of experience both as a performer and as a teacher, he is always able to help you find solutions for any and every technical/musical issue and  his lessons are delivered in a such positive way, I have many colleaugues who also study with Graham and all say the same thing; it is wonderful to have found the such a supportive, positive and inspirational teacher to work with.


Most memorable/significant teaching experiences?
I have many memorable teaching experiences and have had some lovely interesting and talented pupils over the years, but I will never forget a little girl who was really struggling to learn and had been told by a previous teacher that she would never be able to play the piano. This child did have some learning difficulties and was so shy and lacking in confidence, but desperate to learn. With a lot of encouragement she managed to prepare her pieces and won her class at the local music festival, the look of shock, disbelief and pride on her face when she won was incredible and was better than the best high flyer pupil winning, as this win really changed this girl’s view of herself, and expanded her self confidence, she had never succeeded at anything before and was being bullied at school too, so this success, which may seem so small to many, meant so much to her, and for me, this was a really rewarding moment. I have had lots of pupils go on and do really well, some winning the whole of the piano section at festivals, but this little girl’s achievement was probably one of the best moments of my teaching career to be honest because I had helped her to believe in herself and to understand that she could succeed at something.


What are the most exciting/challenging aspects of teaching adults?
I do enjoy teaching adults because they have come to lessons very keen to learn and entirely of their own free will. Often, adults will spend more time practicing, but not always effectively!

I do believe that a great part of our job as piano teachers is to show people how to practice effectively. A lot of adults respond to this very well, and it is wonderful when this happens, I have had some lovely adult pupils who had played as a child and come back to it later in life when they have time to do it justice and most do very well and get a great deal of pleasure out of their piano lessons as it is time set aside just for them and they have returned to playing or begun playing, at this stage of their life purely and simply because they love music.

The challenges can come  when the adult pupil does not really listen (but this is also true of children), or thinks they know better than you, if perhaps they are very confident/successful in other aspects of their life such as their career, and actually find it very hard to take advice/instruction  from someone else.

It can also be challenging if an adult pupil has a busy full time job with very little time to practice and has come along thinking that success can be achieved just by having the lessons, not really having thought out the time commitment involved.

I do think that with time, patience and encouragement most adults get so much from their lessons and can really move forward with their playing. If this was not happening then I would always be happy to suggest that they try another teacher/colleague as it can sometimes be just that they need a different personality.

What do you expect from your students?
I think it is really up to me to inspire and encourage my pupils, but I do expect my pupils to practice effectively and see it as my responsibility to show them how to do this.

I understand that there are times when other school work has to come first, or when someone has not been well etc, but generally, there is an expectation that they must practice, after all, most of the work has to be done through practice, we cannot progress without effective practice, and there are no shortcuts with piano playing.

I am not big on rules though, I think it is very important for pupils to feel at ease during their lesson; it is very difficult for them to be creative if they are not relaxed. I have two very nice pianos though, so I do ask that they are treated with respect!

There is so much piano repertoire to explore that I do ask that pupils trust me when I encourage them to at least TRY a different style.Of course trust has to be earned, and as a teacher I always try to listen to and respect what pupils want from their lessons too.


What are your views on exams, festivals and competitions?
I am definitely not a fan of rushing from one exam to the next and believe strongly that learning the piano is not all about passing exams, I often find that the desire to push children through grades comes from parents and I refuse to give in to this kind of pressure. I do ask them to trust my professional judgement and experience on this. Of course trust has to be earned, and as a teacher I always try to listen to and respect what pupils want from their lessons too.

I think that as long as exams, festivals and competitions are not seen as the main goal, but as part of a pupil’s overall musical development, then they do have a very good place in a pupil’s piano education.

Working towards and exam/festival/competition is very good discipline, and after all music is a performing art and lots can be learned from the preparation and taking part in these things. I know from personal experience that an impending exam, festival or competition can really help motivate you to practice, however, not all students who are suited to this process and that is fine with me. I think that encouraging exams and competitions is great, but pressurising someone who is terrified would only result in a soul destroying experience. I think you have to know your pupils well and they have to trust you enough to be honest about what their goals and ambitions are with their piano playing.

I am a firm believer that the lessons should be about each individual and I have no agenda other than working with each student to achieve their musical needs/goals. If a pupil wants to take part in exams/festivals or competitions then I am very happy to work with them on this and it is always rewarding when they do well. It must be their choice though and I do offer other less formal performing opportunities.


What are your thoughts on the link between performance and teaching?
I think that it is hugely important for a teacher to be a good pianist and to still perform in some capacity; music is a performing art, and we need to be able to practise what we preach!

Even if performances are informal, the striving to get a work ready to perform and coping with the nerves, building up stamina and concentration,  and the different dynamic of playing to others is so important and informs our teaching.

I try to perform regularly and set myself new challenges. I have an AB Diploma in performance which I did many years ago, and am currently working towards the LRSM performer’s diploma, therefore I have done quite a lot of performing recently in preparation for this, and feel that performing is a very important part of my career. Last year I joined the London Piano Meetup Group which has been a great way of finding lots of performance opportunities, both formal and informal and  look forward to several opportunities to perform in their South London Concert Series this year as well as continuing to play in the regular and less formal events we have. I will also be doing a couple of recitals in Bedford later this year and will use those as opportunities to rehearse my LRSM programme and also to raise money for Music for Memory, a cause very close to my heart.

The most nerve-wracking recent performing experience was playing to a room full of fellow teachers/pianists at the EPTA conference this year! I think we learn so much when we perform and this is essential for good teaching. It also helps us to remember to empathise with our students and to be able to help them when performing nerves affect them or they struggle with the stamina and focus as we are able to relate well to this.

As musicians we never stop learning and developing, there is so much repertoire to explore and perform too. I have recently started playing duets again with a friend and would really like to get involved in performing some chamber music and will be hosting some piano platforms and duet/chamber music opportunities at my house in Bedford as part of my role as Regional Co-ordinator for the newly formed EPTA group for Bedford Town.

I also sing in a choir and we have several concerts a year. I will also be taking up the cello later this year and hope to quite quickly get to a standard where I can play in an orchestra which I think will also add another dimension to my piano playing and teaching.

I believe that performing regularly helps us to constantly stay motivated and enthusiastic about music in general and this enthusiasm is passed on to our pupils.

Who are your favourite pianists/pianist-teachers and why?
I have always been inspired by the recordings of Horowitz and Arrau with their beautiful warm tone. For me, tone/sound and communication are the number one priority in piano playing.  I am not at all inspired or impressed by flashy technique alone, the playing has to communicate something to the audience. Music is such a powerful form of communication and the piano is able to say/sing so much without words.

There are so many pianists I admire, Murray Perahia is one favourite, I just love his Bach and Mozart playing, the tone is beautiful and never harsh, the playing precise but full of warmth, equally, I love Angela Hewitt’s Bach.
As well as the pianists and teachers I have already mentioned, I hugely admire, and have also had lessons with my lovely friend Chenyin Li who is a fabulous pianist and teacher and is also the ‘Pianist’ Magazine artist. Her sound is fantastic, and technique phenomenal she is so diverse too.
Noriko Ogawa is another favourite,   as well as being a fabulous pianist, she is also warm, encouraging and supportive and has become a friend to us. I am particularly inspired by Noriko’s Debussy recordings I have heard Noriko play many times and I attended her Wigmore Hall recital where she played Debussy and Takimitsu, I was blown away by the way she is able to make such a fantastic sound, draw the audience into a wonderful atmosphere and explore every tonal colour on the piano, always maintaining absolute clarity .

Over the last two summers I have been lucky enough to study with Noriko at the piano festival and summer school run by Murray Mclachlan and his wife, Kathryn Page at Chetham’s School of Music. Murray and Kathryn are wonderful pianists too, and work so hard to make the summer school the great success that it is. The atmosphere there is so friendly, inclusive and totally inspiring with a love of the piano being at the heart of everything. The summer school is also a fantastic opportunity for piano teachers who are not necessarily professional performers, to get lots of performing experience and help. There are also two concerts by the faculty almost every evening with a huge variety of styles and repertoire. So many international pianists in one place, it is really a wonderful opportunity and experience.
During this year’s piano festival and summer school I have enjoyed attending many fabulous concerts by hugely talented pianists such as: Noriko Ogawa, Graham Caskie, Philip Fowke, Murray McLachlan, Kathryn Page, Carlo Grante, Leslie Howard, Peter Donohoe, Domonique Merlet and Artur Pizzaro to name but a few! All of whom are really inspirational pianists.
I was lucky enough to hear Leslie Howard and have some lessons with him at summer school too in 2011, he is a fabulous Liszt player and very warm and encouraging as a teacher.

Philip Fowke is also very encouraging with adults and a wonderful player, Anna Markland too.Last year I also heard wonderful Italian pianist and friend Carlo Grante whose Masterclass/Seminar on his book Fundamentals of Piano Methodology, I attended in May.My late husband, the wonderful pianist and Professor, Raymond Banning remains my greatest musical inspiration as a pianist and teacher.

Lorraine Womack-Banning is a highly experienced piano teacher and pianist based in Bedford, UK. Before moving to Bedford, she worked in North Devon both as a teacher and also using music therapeutically with terminally ill children. Lorraine is also involved with Music for Memory as a volunteer helping to deliver music to patients with dementia.

Interview date: September 2013

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Lynne14What is your first memory of the piano?

I first learnt to play the piano when I was very young and living in Vermont, USA.  I have a distinct memory of my first piano – a vast white upright with a black-leaf Art Nouveau design on the front.  I can remember learning Mary Had a Little Lamb on black notes, and I have a very clear recollection of my first teacher, us sitting next to each other on the piano stool, me marvelling at not just her piano playing, but also her incredibly long hair! I can also remember playing a peculiar electric organ upstairs in the house, with my Mother helping me and playing alongside me.  I had a Children’s Song Book that we used to play together, and I can remember Mum helping me with my piano practise, and also getting stuck on ‘The Bullfrog’ for many months before finally abandoning it.

Who or what inspired you to start teaching? 

To be honest, teaching was something that I fell into.  After finishing University, I was asked by a friend of a friend to teach her teenage daughter. Luckily for me, she led me to the realisation that teaching was something I absolutely loved to do.  I made a lot of mistakes with those first few students – I moved them on too fast, I entered them for exams too quickly- but I learnt from them and I hope that they weren’t too scarred by the experience.  Today’s music students who are taught teaching skills modules, and who have access to other lessons to observe and learn from, are incredibly lucky. I doubt if I’m the only teacher of my age who had to learn our skills with little or no help, and had to do it fast.

Who were your most memorable/significant teachers? 

My A-level music teacher at Lady Verney High School, Miss Hughes, was the first teacher who opened my eyes to counterpoint, fugues, and the structure of music.  At the time, I was struggling wildly with a Bach Fugue, and it was only when I began additional lessons with Miss Hughes, that I discovered why I was coping so badly; I had no concept of a fugue, I didn’t understand the ideas of counterpoint and voicing, I was trying to play the fugue as a harmonic piece, reading it and realising it vertically as if the notes were chords.  The idea that this music was essentially conceived around a single melody was like a revelation to me.  When I moved to Cardiff to study music at University, I became a student of Richard McMahon (now Head of Keyboard Department at RWCMD).  If my eyes were opened by Miss Hughes, then my vision was completely transformed by McMahon.  He taught me to think of the music I was playing as not only of vocal origin, but also taught me to listen to and identify the underlying harmonies, he taught me the concept of direction, shape and colour in music, and the importance of thinking not just pianistically and vocally, but also orchestrally and percussively.

Who or what are the most important influences on your teaching? 

Certainly Richard McMahon has been an enormous influence on my teaching.  Through all my years studying with him, I don’t believe I heard even once the phrase “Play it like this…” or “It should sound like this…”.  He taught me that the key to being able to play a piece was in its understanding, and that once I understood the music, I would be able to work out how to perform it.  Of course, he helped with technical issues, but most of my lessons revolved around my comprehension of what I was playing.  His teaching has influenced me enormously – I rarely talk to my students about the literal markings on the page, rather helping them to understand the ‘why’ of the markings; for instance, “Why does the music get louder here? Where is it driving towards?” rather than “The music gets louder because it is marked ‘crescendo”.  He also taught me that there are very many valid interpretations to any one piece, and this is something that I teach my students.  During one memorable lesson, he explained that he disagreed wildly with how I was articulating a specific section, so asked me play it so convincingly that it would persuade him of its validity.  This experience, and many more like it, has left me with a love of my students disagreeing with my ideas on interpretation, and I frequently find myself asking them to “convince me and anybody else listening” of their ideas.

I have also been heavily influenced by Daniel Barenboim – I have read “Everything is Connected” many times over, and can often be found quoting him during lessons.  His description of the true meaning of the term ‘rubato’ is nothing short of genius, and something that I discuss frequently with my own students.

Most memorable/significant teaching experiences?  

I have so many! Most of my memorable teaching experiences are to do with a student ‘getting’ something after a period of struggling – whether it is an understanding of a musical concept, a sound, a technique, a performance, or an exam result. I had a recent lesson where a student developed a whole new level of touch and tone control after working all lesson not just on listening to speech patterns but also on playing on a closed piano lid (a favourite teaching trick of mine that instantly allows a student to hear how much or how little attack there is behind the notes).  That Eureka! moment is something I cherish every time it happens.

Because I teach a wide range of students and I have an open-door policy for anyone wishing to learn, this does mean that I get just as much of a buzz out of a gifted musician being able to play a technically demanding piece with insight, depth and skill, as I do out of a student who finds learning the piano so much more challenging, finally achieving a full piece with musicality and confidence.

What are the most exciting/challenging aspects of teaching adults? 

Adult learners come with their own challenges and difficulties, but also a unique set of skills.  Adults are much more able to think logically and work out things by themselves over the week, but they tend to have far more problems with finger agility than children, and I often find that adults struggle to find the time to practise regularly. Most of my adult learners are extraordinarily busy, often juggling work and children before they even begin to think about practise, and this often leads to frustration from themselves with regards to their progress.

What do you expect from your students? 

I have different expectations from different students, depending on their commitment level, their goals, and obviously their age, but I do expect from all of them a high level of honesty, a certain level of hard work, and as much respect towards me and my instrument that I give them.

What are your views on exams, festivals and competitions? 

I have very mixed feelings about all of these.  Although they all have their uses, I’m becoming more and more convinced that there is a culture of overuse and misuse that has been on the rise for many years and is now reaching a peak.  There are many students and parents who don’t see progress unless they have a certificate or medal to prove it, and who have been taught that the only way to learn is to ‘progress through the grades’, sitting every one along the way, and often sacrificing time spent learning new repertoire and skills in the process. I don’t know what the answer is to this, but I think if music education continues along this route, we will end up with a generation of musicians who have a grade 8 certificate but who are unable to think of music as anything other than its individual examination sections – scales, aural tests, pieces, and sight reading.  A parent of one of my students once said to me “Isn’t it sad that when my son says he plays the piano, the immediate question is “What grade are you?”.  Why does nobody ask, “What interesting pieces are you playing at the minute?””, and I think this sums up the present exam culture perfectly.  I spend a lot of time attempting to convince parents and students that exams, festivals and competitions are all very useful sidesteps in their musical education, but that to use them as the sole goal is not only detrimental, but not what the systems were set out to do in the first place.

What do you consider to be the most important concepts to impart to beginning students, and to advanced students? 

To beginners – that you should never play a single note without listening to yourself, that odd mistakes don’t matter, that you should question yourselves and your teachers, and that it is ok, great fun and incredibly useful, to improvise.

To advanced students – that you should never play a single note without listening to yourself, that odd mistakes don’t matter, that you should question yourselves and your teachers, and that it is ok, great fun, and incredibly useful, to improvise.

What are you thoughts on the link between performance and teaching? 

I think the only teachers who can effectively teach performance technique are ones who have a history of performance behind them.  Not all of my students enjoy performing (in fact, many of them actively shy away from it), but I believe even those students need to be aware of the elements of performance practise, even if the only people they will ever perform to are themselves.

Who are your favourite pianists/pianist-teachers and why? 

Too many to mention! But I grew up with a love of older pianists such as Ashkenazy and Barenboim, and this love for these great musicians has stuck by me over the years.

Lynne studied piano in Cardiff at Cardiff University and RWCMD where she had regular tuition from renowned concert pianist and teacher Richard McMahon.   

She has been teaching piano to children and adults through private lessons and at RWCMD for 15 years.  She is a specialist in early years teaching, in working with children with visual impairments, autism, dyslexia & dyspraxia, and she recently spent two years working with a student who only had the use of her right hand.   

Lynne does not use a specific teaching method, but she firmly believes that young musicians should be taught to think independently, to question themselves and their teachers, and should not become reliant on graded examinations in order to achieve a sense of progress.   

Lynne is currently researching and writing a book about piano teaching.  Visit Lynne’s blog and website properpianofingers.com

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Cathy 294-smallWhat is your first memory of the piano? 

When I was around 5 years old a piano appeared in our house. I can’t remember now how it came to be there – I think it may have been inherited from my grandmother. I can remember watching my father play the piano by ear. I would stand at one end of the piano, joining in playing notes too, fascinated by the effect. Not long after I began to make up little tunes of my own. The ability to play by ear and to improvise has stayed with me all my life.

Who or what inspired you to start teaching? 

My first introduction to teaching piano was teaching the two young children of some friends while I was studying piano at Auckland University in New Zealand. I was really quite novice at it then and can’t imagine how effective I was as a teacher. However later when I came to study and work in London it eventually became a necessity to earn part of my living as a piano teacher and gradually my ability to teach developed.

Who were your most memorable/significant teachers? 

A number of teachers remain very special to me. My first significant teacher, Mary McClafferty, was a very fine musician, who took me through my advanced piano grades and diplomas whilst I was at school. She was so modest – she would have never told me at the time but in her obituary I read that the great Henry Wood invited her to play in the proms when she was young. I remember she always spoke very fast – perhaps trying to fit in as much as possible in the time allotted!

When I went to Auckland University to study music I had the unique experience of studying with two piano teachers simultaneously. This was only possible as one had been the pupil of the other. They worked in perfect tandem, covering a wide range of solo and chamber repertoire between them with each student. Janetta McStay (who sadly died just recently at the age of 95) was not only a great teacher but a really world class musician and performer. During the 1970’s I heard her play as an equal with many wonderful musicians during their visits to New Zealand and it was not surprising that the Borodin Quartet especially requested her to join them on a tour of Russia. I also studied with her former pupil, Bryan Sayer, also an excellent pianist and teacher, who had studied in Paris with Vlado Perlmuter. They have both remained lifelong friends and mentors.  In the five years I studied with them I learnt such an enormous amount from them: about technique, style, detail and precision, beauty of tone and phrasing. The list goes on…

Later in London I was privileged to study with the late Peter Wallfisch – a very special pianist and musician and so incredibly generous: he would think nothing of giving a three or four hour lesson, if he felt the music required it. He had such wonderful imagination and made you really think about interpretation in a very deep and creative way. In his teaching I felt there were connections back to great teaching pedagogues such as Artur Schnabel.

Who or what are the most important influences on your teaching? 

All of those wonderful piano teachers have left their mark in different ways through their generosity, high professional standards and complete commitment to their art.

I am also influenced by the playing I do with other musicians as I am being constantly challenged to remain open to different ways of working, which keeps me fresh.

I find much can be learnt from observing master classes.  Andras Schiff, Richard Goode and Murray Perahia have all given me much to think about. I am also fascinated by less conventional approaches: Nelly Ben–Or is a pianist who offers a unique take on performance due to her training as an Alexander Technique Teacher. William Westney (American pedagogue and prize winning pianist, influenced by the teaching of Jacques Dalcroze) also offers a completely original and refreshing approach to practising and performing. I recommend reading his inspiring book The Perfect Wrong Note (published by Amadeus).

Lastly and certainly not least I am always learning from my students!

Most memorable/significant teaching experiences?  

Whether modest or momentous I find there are regular moments of satisfaction and delight with teaching that are too numerous to recall. It is always a joy when a student experiences a break through, whatever level they are at.

What are the most exciting/challenging aspects of teaching adults?

I have a number of adult students these days and enjoy very much working with them. Sometimes it is necessary to make their aims more realistic – “Schumann’s Carnival is a great work but let’s start with exploring some of his shorter piano pieces first”! However, age needn’t be a barrier to progress and playing the piano is great exercise for the mind as well as for physical co-ordination. It is also self-sufficient and there really is a fantastic repertoire to choose from.

What do you expect from your students?

Enthusiasm, commitment and a willingness to try something new.

What are your views on exams, festivals and competitions? 

They have their place and can be an excellent goal for students and of course some students thrive on competitions although I believe they shouldn’t be the end all. All performance opportunities are important however– what is music if not communicated?

What do you consider to be the most important concepts to impart to beginning students, and to advanced students? 

The teaching of beginners can be much underestimated in importance. It really does require careful planning and patience to teach well at this level and deliver a sound and well balanced programme of musicianship and technique. Elements such as pulse, rhythm and pitch need to be broken down and taught in small achievable steps. Introducing the sound before the symbol is so important- too many tutor books immediately push notation first.

To make the journey towards artistry the advanced student needs to be encouraged to develop their interpretive ability as well as their technical proficiency. It’s about having something individual to say as a musician.

What are your thoughts on the link between performance and teaching? 

I believe one helps the other. How often when I teach I find I am telling myself what I also need to take on board in my own playing. Playing oneself gives one the ability to empathise with the student, to understand the process. I will regularly demonstrate in my teaching to make sure I have offered a clear aural model of the ideas I am suggesting.

Who are your favourite pianists/pianist-teachers and why? 

There are too many pianists to name but I listen to them to be inspired. We are lucky to have a rich heritage of recorded performances of many great pianists of the past to draw on. There are still a lot of wonderful classical musicians out there playing live. I am also drawn to jazz – there is so much creativity happening in this field, which harkens back to the era of composer/ performers.

Catherine Riley graduated from the University of Auckland, New Zealand, with an M.Mus degree in Performance, with first class honours.  Following successes with the two major New Zealand concerto competitions, she recorded for Radio New Zealand and undertook several professional piano concerto engagements.   

A grant from the NZ Arts council enabled her to continue with post graduate studies at the Royal College of Music with Kendall Taylor and Peter Wallfisch.  Several awards led to concerts at the Queen Elizabeth Hall, the Purcell Room and Fairfield Halls.  She has also given performances in the Barbican Centre as well as St. John’s, Smith Square and St. Martin-in-the-Fields.  

She has performed as both soloist and chamber musician and given numerous recitals and chamber music concerts in the UK and in Europe and has recorded the complete works for violin and piano by Grieg with American violinist, Christopher Collins Lee. In 2007 she formed the Johannes Piano Quartet with colleagues who are fellow tutors at the Centre for Young Musicians, in London. She has also recently formed a duo with the pianist Graham Fitch.  

Catherine is also very active in the field of music education and is Head of Piano at the Centre for Young Musicians as well as being a principal tutor for the EPTA Piano Teaching Course. 

UPCOMING CONCERTS:

26 May 2013 The Johannes Piano Quartet with guest Lynn Cook perform piano quintets by Brahms and Granados.

The Colour Theatre, Merton Abbey Mills, SW19 (www.mertonabbeymusic.com)

31 July 2013 Piano Duet recital by Graham Fitch and Cathy Riley

Markson Music and Wine Evening: St Mary Magdalene Church, NW1

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What is your first memory of the piano? 

My mother always played the piano. We had an old Aldrich upright that she played while she was pregnant with me and that I played until I was 13 years old. She was my teacher at that time.

Who or what inspired you to start teaching?

I was a performance major and first taught some students for a friend in her absence. I enjoyed teaching but did not have the training for it.

Who were your most memorable/significant teachers?

I studied with Franceen Downing, who took me through my early teen years and then with Dr. Bob L. Bennett through my last two years of high school and four undergraduate years at California State University, Fresno.

I studied with Ena Bronstein while working on my Master’s Degree. She had a beautiful way of imparting the Arrau technique. I also studied accompanying with Tait Barrows, a wonderful and humorous collaborative pianist and wife of the late John Barrows, horn player.

Who or what are the most important influences on your teaching?

By far the most important influence on my teaching was a one-year internship with Margaret Talcott who gave me a teaching curriculum specific to piano that introduces concepts and skills at appropriate age/cognitive levels.  Curriculum-based teaching enables anyone who practices regularly a chance to play the piano with confidence.

Most memorable/significant teaching experiences? 

Most lessons I teach are memorable (to me anyway). The only lessons I find difficult occur when a student loses interest and stops practicing for a period of time. Fortunately, this does not happen often.

What are the most exciting/challenging aspects of teaching adults? 

I find it exciting to teach adults when they progress. Adults are a challenge because the business of life can easily get in the way of practice. Their time is not protected by their parents as a child’s would be.

What do you expect from your students?

I expect regular practice, the ability to work out a piece independently with correct notes, rhythms and dynamics, regular attendance at lessons, performance on some recitals, and a solid understanding of the theory behind their music.

What are your views on exams, festivals and competitions?

They are fine if they don’t interfere with the process of learning skills and concepts. If the extra activity throws off the curriculum or forces concepts to be taught before I would normally teach them, then it is not worth the imbalance it produces in my teaching. I have no personal stake in whether my students impress adjudicators or other teachers by their playing and I am more interested in how well they are learning. They are happiest and want to continue piano lessons when they feel confident in their ability to teach themselves.

What do you consider to be the most important concepts to impart to beginning students, and to advanced students?

To beginners: solid rhythmic playing, reading skills, the use of creative improvisation to reinforce concepts

To advanced students: persistence, technical ability to play what they want, freedom to choose the type of music they like to learn

What do you consider to be the best and worst aspects the job?

I think it’s wonderful to begin a student when they’re young and watch them grow up. The worst aspect is the pay.

What is your favourite music to teach? To play?

I like to teach any music and prefer to play “classical”, especially chamber music. I also enjoy singing and playing my own songs accompanying myself on the piano or  guitar.

Who are your favourite pianists/pianist-teachers and why?

Claudio Arrau was my all-time favourite because he often took slower tempi, enabling the listener to hear everything that the composer wrote. Ena Bronstein is my favourite pianist-teacher.

Janet Jones began piano lessons at age four and has taught many students of all ages, preschool through adult. She also teaches Musikgarten, birth through age five. She grew up in Fresno, California and received her Master’s Degree in piano performance from CSUF, Fresno. She also has a Master’s Degree in Education, Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Phoenix. She currently teaches at her own small piano studio in Madison, Wisconsin. She also enjoys performing folk tales and original songs and stories for children and adults.